Chapter 17

The space-borne transport was huge. Its bulk blotted out the weave of stars behind it. Qi had been a tad nervous suiting up for another spacing but all of that internal nattering faded away as he tried to take in the size of the structure. Glancing past the periphery of the ship's beam, he strained to glimpse some of the other one hundred and twenty some ships that had gathered at this desolate spot far above the plane of a five planet solar system with no habitable planets. He could not tell see them.

He was there because he was expendable, because he was not a member of the families. One of Benni's security detail was latched to Benni's left side and Qi was latched to Benni's right side. The two of them guided the complaining patriarch across the gap to the Khan transport airlock. Benni kept arguing that he was being babied. Qi, who had an extra medkit and a headful of instructions on how to apply the various vials, injections, and inhalants, kept his mouth shut and prayed to whatever deity was near that Benni was right.

All the patriarchs and matriarchs of the Temperdis families were gathering in the cargo hold of this ship for a vote. Benni had been insistent that all of the information that had been gathered was to be shared. In this matter, there were to be no secrets between the families. As he put it, the secrets the families kept against each other kept them sealed up many years more than necessary in the Temperdis. They were strong enough to break the ceiling over their heads if all had known what some already knew.

After stripping off their suits and securing them in standing bins, Benni left his security in the changing room. Together with Qi, they followed their escort to the cargo hold/meeting room. The room had been set up with a series of platforms that stepped down to the bare floor in the middle of large room. All the platforms had the box-like benches that Qi had seen Volentin use for Family meetings. None of them had backs.

Benni headed directly for the middle at the bottom of the platforms, waving and nodding as he went to various people who were already gathering. At the bottom, Benni ordered Qi set up the holograph broadcasters. Using his larger comp, Qi fired up the gluons and broadcast the 3-D version of Capitol Prime. Talking around the room dropped off as all eyes turned to the display.

Twenty some minutes ticked away as Qi sat by himself, cross-legged on the floor with his comp sitting on a bench in front of him. More people came into the room and joined others circulating around the platforms. To Qi's relief, Benni sat on a box and greeted those who came up to him, while waving to others further up.

Finally, a ship's bell rang. Everyone took a seat, some on the box benches and others on the platform edges facing Benni.

Benni thanked everyone for coming. He introduced Qi as a contractor from Earth of the Shadowlands Family, which brought long considered murmurs of "hmm." Qi could not decide if their thoughts were in his favor.

Benni then announced that all of the known Families were represented in the room. Six Families had disappeared since they had last counted a decade ago, either assimilated or no longer reachable. Eighty six Families were in attendance.

"We lost twelve before the last count," someone to Qi's right said. "We are slowly being hacked away."

"Many of us have a young generation that is much larger," another said. "We may be fewer Families, but our families are larger."

"After that initial burst of freedom, fertility rates have dropped," an older woman with a scar down her right cheek said. "Birth defects are up and weakened male fertility is up. The Temperdis follows us."

The comment peaked Qi's interest but he kept his down, hiding any thoughts from the gathering. Quiyo had mentioned the idea of children more than once although they were only fuck bunnies. Was Volentin actively seeking healthy outsiders?

"We need better genetic therapy," one called.

"We need to bring in outside sperm donors," said another.

Benni cleared his throat. "We need the facilities and the freedom to research our genetics without fear of government interference. Our situations have collapsed into a narrow set of choices. However, we cannot solve our own problems until we solve this relationship with the Imperium."

Someone snorted. "The Imperium and their military lackeys don't want a 'relationship' the families. They want us gone. They awaken each morning regretting they ever released us from the hole."

"Why?" someone on the other side called out. "Why do they hate us?"

"We threatened their status quo," the man who snorted replied. "We swat away their military minions like terrestrial insects. They want their power and their money and their political games. All of human space is subservient to them except for us. Our very existence challenges the legitimacy of their institutions."

"A bit over-dramatic perhaps," Benni said.

The man did not back down. "You translated the Tagway-Shinar documents. How many quintillions of credits have they created and consumed? Entire planets and stations are in their thrall. How many senators do they own? Plus, they aren't the only interstellar corporation playing this game. My ship is entirely Waytani components. What have they done that we don't know about?"

"If we destroy these corporations, we destroy our own ships," another countered. "We are in no position to build ships from scratch. The Callisto experiment proved that."

Qi had not considered the Callisto Station an experiment. No one in Volentin had treated it as such either although they readily jettisoned it when the odds were no longer in their favor. Qi questioned whether the speaker was rewriting recent history to conform to his views.

"Even more," said the woman next to him, "the real rot is the collusion between the Imperial Council, the corporations and the military. We would have to chop off three heads."

"Oh, I think two heads would do," said a soft voice, which carried remarkably well. The man was sitting towards the back behind Benni. More than one person in the room hissed with an intake of breath when they looked up at the speaker.

"Farendass," was whispered around the room. Qi felt the tension increase around the room, which he found refreshing. He was not the only one to be leery of Farendass Family. If the other families were anxious, then his own feelings were well justified. He was not alone.